THE RIGHT TRACK

WESLACO - Robin Torres literally ran away from his problems.
And it worked.
Growing up and all the way through middle school, Torres was a self-proclaimed troublemaker. He skipped school and got into fights. Torres was on the fast track to a troubled high school life.
"I was just hanging out with the wrong people," Torres said. "I didn't have any good influences in my life."
Well, he had one.
Torres trained at a local boxing gym and developed a liking for running. The Weslaco East senior trained hard and ran hard. And he got good at it.
When Torres first arrived in high school, he joined the Wildcats cross country team. He later went out for track.
"A lot of coaches told me to stay away from him because he was trouble," East boys track and field head coach Tom Owens said. "But I like to form my own opinion about people. And Robin's come a long way. He does what it takes to be a good runner. He eats right and he studies the sport."
And all that work has finally paid off for Torres.
Last year at the Region IV-4A track and field meet, Torres finished third in the 800-meter run, just missing out on qualifying for the state meet.
After the race Torres seemed in great spirits, considering the outcome. Torres would be ready come his senior season.
And boy was he ready.
Torres ran a personal best of 1 minute, 56.46 seconds to win gold at regionals and qualify for the state meet. Lockhart's James Bonn was second in 1:56.86.
Torres became the second athlete from Weslaco East to qualify for the state meet in the school's history. Lily Cavazos qualified in the triple jump in 2005.
"It's a big accomplishment," Torres said. "But I see it as just another race. It's going to be a lot tougher, but it's another race. I'll just go up there and give it my best and hope everything works out."
Owens knows the competition will be a lot tougher at the UIL State Track and Field Championships in Austin on Friday and Saturday.
"We want to PR (personal record) up there," Owens said. "Every year he seems to get faster at the end of the year. But we're going to run to win."
Torres will be the only athlete from East in Austin this weekend. But he'll be one of 15 athletes representing the Valley.
La Joya's Oscar Garza is one of the other runners competing at state this weekend. Garza also won the 800 in San Antonio and will make a return trip to the state meet.
Although they come from two different schools down here, in Austin they're representing the same area and Torres is looking forward to having Garza there as a sort of teammate.
The two have become friends throughout the years and Torres looks up to Garza as a runner and person.
"I've gone to him for advice and he's a good mentor," Torres said of Garza. "We lean on each other and even though we're not running in the same race, I know he'll be there and that's good. Maybe it'll pump him up a little for his race. We're both going to be in tough races but I think we'll both do well."
But even if Torres doesn't win or bring home a medal, he feels he's already won.
One decision changed his entire life for the better and it has paid dividends the past four years.
Torres is now getting looked at by colleges and universities, and Owens is excited for the young man that he took a risk on four years ago.
"He's definitely got what it takes to run at the next level," Owens said. "I've got nothing but respect for Robin and it's been a pleasure to work with him. We're going to miss him... I'm going to miss him."
And surely Torres will miss Owens and Weslaco East.
But the maturing and growing up Torres did on the track and in life while at Weslaco East will stick with him forever.
"It's been a long road to get here," Torres said, referring to the sport and life. "There's been a lot of stuff I've gone through from day to day. But this year was fun. I had a fun track season."
He's now only 800 meters away from a dream.